Dan Straily gets win over Giants

Donaldson homers, Straily has solid outing in Oakland win

Updated 10:53 pm, Monday, May 27, 2013

Josh Donaldson is congratulated in the A's dugout after his two-run homer in the fourth inning put Oakland ahead to stay.

Josh Donaldson is congratulated in the A's dugout after his two-run homer in the fourth inning put Oakland ahead to stay.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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The A's Yoenis Céspedes is on a roll ... or at least he went for a roll after missing a line drive hit by the Giants' Brandon Crawford in the fifth inning.

The A's Yoenis Céspedes is on a roll ... or at least he went for a roll after missing a line drive hit by the Giants' Brandon Crawford in the fifth inning.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Dan Straily gave up one run and four hits in six innings in the A's Memorial Day win over the Giants. Straily's solid work followed another strong outing in Texas last Tuesday.

Dan Straily gave up one run and four hits in six innings in the A's Memorial Day win over the Giants. Straily's solid work followed another strong outing in Texas last Tuesday.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Dan Straily throws to the San Francisco Giants during the first inning of a baseball game in Oakland, Calif., Monday, May 27, 2013. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Dan Straily throws to the San Francisco Giants during the first inning of a baseball game in Oakland, Calif., Monday, May 27, 2013. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Photo: Tony Avelar, Associated Press

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Catcher Guillermo Quiroz (left) waits for a throw while Chris Young scores the fourth run of the game in the 7th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif. less

Catcher Guillermo Quiroz (left) waits for a throw while Chris Young scores the fourth run of the game in the 7th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day ... more

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Hunter Pence reaches for a drive hit by Yoenis Cespedes which scores two runs Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Hunter Pence reaches for a drive hit by Yoenis Cespedes which scores two runs Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Josh Donaldson launches a two run homer in the 4th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Josh Donaldson launches a two run homer in the 4th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Yoenis Cespedes (left) and Adam Rosales enjoy a moment after Cespedes hit his double in the 7th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif. less

Yoenis Cespedes (left) and Adam Rosales enjoy a moment after Cespedes hit his double in the 7th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co ... more

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Madison Bumgarner is greeted by teammates after he left the game Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Madison Bumgarner is greeted by teammates after he left the game Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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A's relief pitcher Sean Doolittle walks off the mound after a successful inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif. less

A's relief pitcher Sean Doolittle walks off the mound after a successful inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, ... more

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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The Giants, A's and fans paused for a remembrance of Memorial Day Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

The Giants, A's and fans paused for a remembrance of Memorial Day Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Oakland A's fans bring out the paintings as they celebrate a home run Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Oakland A's fans bring out the paintings as they celebrate a home run Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Coco Crisp caught a long drive off the bat of Gregor Blanco to end the 3rd inning. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Coco Crisp caught a long drive off the bat of Gregor Blanco to end the 3rd inning. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Madison Bumgarner in action during the first inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's vs the San Francisco Giants on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Madison Bumgarner in action during the first inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's vs the San Francisco Giants on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Coco Crisp reacts to striking out with the bases loaded to end the 4th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Coco Crisp reacts to striking out with the bases loaded to end the 4th inning Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's beat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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The A's Brandon Moss held his camo hat in pregame ceremonies Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's vs the San Francisco Giants on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

The A's Brandon Moss held his camo hat in pregame ceremonies Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's vs the San Francisco Giants on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Staff Sgt. Dale Beatty threw out the first pitch on Memorial Day Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's vs the San Francisco Giants on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Staff Sgt. Dale Beatty threw out the first pitch on Memorial Day Monday May 27, 2013. The Oakland A's vs the San Francisco Giants on Memorial Day 2013 at the O.co coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

Photo: Brant Ward, The Chronicle

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Dan Straily gets win over Giants

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After breezing by the Astros yet again over the weekend, the A's found themselves with a completely different dynamic Monday. They followed a day game on the road with a day game at home, most unusual, and they welcomed their regional rivals - the defending World Series champions - to town.

The Giants had Madison Bumgarner, their best starter this season, on the mound, giving Oakland a good test before a sellout crowd on Memorial Day. And the A's played one of their better all-around games of the season, with terrific pitching, timely hitting and good defense in a 4-1 win over the Giants.

"I didn't watch much of the playoffs, but I heard they won the World Series," reliever Sean Doolittle said dryly. "Having the defending world champion in our building, crosstown rivals, guys get fired up for that. It was a packed house, an awesome environment and a big win for us. ... Today was kind of the formula for us in a win."

A's rookie Dan Straily, who is in the rotation while Brett Anderson is on the disabled list, made it back-to-back strong starts, working six innings Monday and allowing four hits, a walk and a run.

Bumgarner gave up four runs in 6 2/3 innings; Josh Donaldson hit a two-run homer in the fourth, the A's first hit off Bumgarner; and George Kontos replaced Bumgarner with two on in the seventh and allowed a two-run double by Yoenis Céspedes with two outs.

"There's no question the offense has to get going here a little bit, too, but this is the kind of pitching we're going to need playing these good clubs," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "Madison did a great job. One inning, he got out of sync and had trouble getting the ball where he wanted."

Straily has struggled to find some consistency at the big-league level, generally following a good-start/bad-start pattern. But after a particularly frustrating performance against the Rangers on May 15, when Straily walked four batters and hit two while allowing four runs in 4 1/3 innings, catcher Derek Norris made a point of finding Straily during batting practice to talk him through things.

"DeNo told me to go out there and be confident, own the mound, be the guy you were in Triple-A," Straily said.

"That guy" isn't necessarily a big strikeout guy, though Straily led all of pro baseball with 190 strikeouts last year. He had only one Monday, and Straily said he has found that pitches that got big swings from hitters in the minors get laid off at the big-league level. That's OK, he said.

Since that chat with Norris, Straily has allowed six hits, one walk and one run in 13 innings.

On Monday, he allowed one walk - on four pitches to Gregor Blanco in the sixth - and Blanco scored the Giants' only run.

Straily was able to control the damage, even after a single by Marco Scutaro put men at the corners with nobody out. Straily got three consecutive groundouts, including one by Buster Posey that sent in Blanco.

The A's have won nine of their past 10 games and are six games over .500 for the first time since April 20. The Giants have lost eight of their past 13 and are 9-14 on the road.

Straily's surge

Before he faced Texas last Tuesday, the A's Dan Straily was 1-2 with a 7.27 ERA. He has lowered his ERA to 5.08 while winning his past two starts:

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